Vintage Minnesota Hockey - History

1939:  Rookie Roy Conacher scored twice and rookie goalie Frank Brimsek recorded his first career playoff shutout (and the first road shutout in team history) as the Bruins beat the Maple Leafs 2-0 in in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final, in Toronto.

1966:  Former NHL center Ken Hodge Jr. born in Windsor, Ont. Hodge played in the NHL 1988-89 through 1992-93 with the Minnesota North Stars, Boston and Tampa Bay.

1968:  Rookie Gord Labossiere scored twice in the first 2:09 of the game to lead the Kings to a 3-2 playoff win over the North Stars, in Game Five of the Quarter-Finals in Los Angeles. Wayne Connelly scored both goals for Minnesota.

1971:  Jude Drouin scored two goals and added an assist in the Minnesota North Stars' 4-3 playoff win against the Blues, in Game Five of their Quarter-Final series at St. Louis.

1985:  Gilles Meloche recorded the second and final shutout of his playoff career as Minnesota won 2-0 over St. Louis, in Game 3 of the Norris Division Semi-Finals. North Stars won the series in three games and advanced to the Division Finals vs Chicago.

1986:  Dennis Maruk scored a goal and added two assists as the Minnesota North Stars won 7-4 in Game Four of the Division Semi-Finals, at St. Louis.

1987:  NHL center Ryan Stoa born in Bloomington, MN.  Stoa has played in the NHL since 2009-10 with Colorado and Washington.

1993:  The Minnesota North Stars played the franchises last ever home game vs. the visiting Chicago Blackhawks at Met Center before relocating to Dallas for the 1993-1994 season.  North Stars lost 3-2 in regulation with goals coming from North Stars Russ Courtnall and Mike McPhee.  North Stars last game ever came 2 days later on the road vs. the Detroit Red Wings at Olympia Stadium (April 15, 1993).

2006:  Keith Ballard tied an NHL record for rookie defensemen (set by Brian Leetch) with his third shorthanded goal of the season, and Curtis Joseph recorded his 46th career shutout as the Coyotes beat the visiting Los Angeles Kings 3-0.

2006:  Zach Parise scored two goals and Brian Gionta had three assists as the Devils beat the visiting Philadelphia Flyers 4-1 in a game that took just 2:04 to play.

2007:  Minnesota's Derek Boogaard tied a team playoff with 14 penalty minutes in a 3-2 loss at Anaheim, in Game 2 of the Western Conference Quarter-Finals.

2009:  Minnesota Wild announced that Head Coach Jacques Lemaire, the only coach in franchise history, was stepping down from his position with the club.

2014:  Edina, MN native Anders Lee scored twice to give the Islanders a 4-3 shootout win at Buffalo, as well as three straight road wins and seven straight goals scored by rookies over their final three games.

2015:  USA Hockey officially announced Todd Richards (Crystal, MN native, and former Gophers Hockey Captain, and Minnesota Wild Head Coach) as Head Coach for the upcoming Worlds'.  Dan Bylsma and Greg Carvel were additionally named as Assistant Coaches.

2023:  With Lakeville, MN native Nick Swaney making his NHL debut for the hometown Minnesota Wild, he became the 67th Minnesota native to play in the NHL for a single season setting a new record for any state, which was established in 2022 when 65 Minnesota natives played in the NHL.